Talk:Houseboy Who Cried Wolf/@comment-30564209-20171002014508
Okay, so, as I read this episode, I cracked a lot of jokes about it because I was just in a trolly mood. Truth is, I enjoyed this episode quite a lot. That being said, there is something to be said about season 2 that isn't nearly as flattering. Maybe that should be left for the season finale though. First things first, the Littles. I don't mind. I have to say, I'm more surprised than I am disappointed by the story you guys concocted for the Littles, simply because you clearly must have known all along that this was hardly the juiciest of mysteries. I read Ben's review, as I usually do, and he went down on it pretty hard, but I'll be softer and nicer: I get it. The Littles' story was never actually intended to be the focal mystery of the season, that was always gonna be Joe's backstory and the Silvia character. The Littles are what they always act like: extra. I'm not gonna make a big fuss over how low-key their story has been all along, because, to me, they are what 5.09 of OUaT was, a nice little bonus to entertain us. Rochelle and Aliza were a hoot all along, and Manny, albeit obnoxious, was intriguing enough. They were a fun addition to the show, and I wasn't all that surprised by the outcome of their story because the very fact that it moved so slowly for so long was a fair indicator that it was a rather superficial story. Ok by now I'm getting to think that my appreciation of the story seems like veiled shade, but that's not the case. I find their story entertaining and socially conscious, in that you present both sides of the BLM drama, and show how ridiculous both of them truly are. Much like with Selena and Joanna's church-blowing story, you clearly chose season 2 to tackle contemporary, polemic issues, which actually shows how much you've matured as writers. That being said, here's where you lose me: so far, you've done a fine job, as I pointed out in my previous review, of addressing the commonplace TV tropes, poking fun at them and subverting them, but with the Littles' story in this episode you actually pretty much repeated two things from DH that you frown upon, those being the riot, of course, and the fact that the mysterious demise in the season 6 mystery was an offscreen character, faceless and almost nameless (was it Sean or Shawn??). In this, you replace said character with an actual physical one, but a nameless co-star. Surely you must have known that would be a minor letdown. Like I said, I don't mind, I appreciate the Littles for what they are and what they brought to the show, but overall, I'm not sure they were the best creative decision, for yet another reason: while they were a fun little extra, they still managed to be a great distraction for the show's lead. The complexity of how much Joe actually had going on helped to make his character far more interesting and prominent than he was in the first season, but all in all, in hindsight, maybe there should have been more focus on the big mysteries, be it Silvia's or Joanna's. Basically, it's like you steered away from those more important stories to address a minor one, but ultimately I worry that the lack of focus given to either one of those arcs just leads to them all being less than satisfying. I already expressed my lukewarm response to at least one part of Jo's mystery, and now I'm being more tolerant regarding the Littles than actually sated. Ok so I initially set out to be kinder than I ended up being. I'm sorry about that. But, again, I still like the Littles and their story. What I don't like, and I can't get over this, sorry, is Val. Look, Val is a mess. Jo keeps saying that she gets way better in season 3 and that that's a general consensus, but I honestly so cannot even be arsed with getting there. I was hoping Val would be a seasonal character and even forgot about the fact that I saw her pregnant long ago. I am not the least bit excited about Val figuring into the final season; I did say I'd keep an open mind though, but the door is slowly yet surely closing. Her raping Ben to get pregnant is just... Why?... She keeps being nonsensical. I appreciated it way more when the season began, no matter how illogical anything she did was, because it was all part of the mystery surrounding her character, but now we know what her "motives" (if you can call them that) are and she still doesn't make a lick of sense, with anything she does. You were both so worried about how I'd react to Jennifer's story this season, but honestly, hadn't you warned me about it, I probably wouldn't even have made a big fuss about it, but I'm surprised you didn't warn me about Val. It's okay to admit you have no idea what you're doing with her - I never know what I'm doing with the WL characters, and I don't care either, I make that shit up as I go along. But I still somehow make things make sense - please, PLEASE assure me that Val will end up making sense down the line. As for Liz and Ali, lol I legit missed that they kissed the first time I read it. That scene was just so damn long that I zoned out during it, had to go back and reread it. Unlike real Ben, I like Liz, and feel as though she's begun to stand out as her own character ever since she was kicked out, and I wanted Ali to be in a lesbian OTP for the longest time anyway (with Jennifer, sure, but whatever), so I guess this is our consolation prize. I wonder if they were planned all along or if you just threw it in cos of the vibes Ali and Jen gave out in season 1. I'm mostly just so darn relieved that Ali/Ben isn't gonna happen, I was starting to worry about that. Rena was fun. As real Ben put it, his personality is consistent and amusing. I legit also thought he was acting, crying on cue, to get Mary to come back, but it's cute that he was being honest. Renary is a thing again, that's fine I guess. Lol Eli. And Kathryn wtf, I wanted them to be a thing, why can't they be a thing? Heck maybe next episode. Otherwise that scene was random af. I'm glad Josh is still reluctant to just embrace Joanna again, and the butlers sharing stuff was cute, as it usually is. As for Juan, still not feeling the love between them, and Josh ruining everything so quickly is kinda grating to watch. As for the marriage thing, I suppose it could be entertaining, I just hope Juan isn't the 16th mainie. I kinda wanted Josh to refuse and for Selena to marry Juan. Oh well. I loved Brad coming to the rescue and the watch coming back into play (called it!). So bae. As for the riot itself, I won't go further into it. Apparently you dislike the DH one because all the stories at the time were bad and because the very reason it started is farfetched, but meh, at least there was a big build-up to it, this one was a bit more random, but still effective and a nice little throwback. Loved Liz coming to Ali's rescue, Brad coming to Josh's rescue, Mary just being there and Joe telling Aliza to go inside. Lol at Manny's death. What DID he intend to do to Rochelle anyway? Guess we'll never know. Is he even in the finale? All in all, a good episode that managed to keep me hooked, but certainly not a jaw-dropping one. Oh yeah and Silvia is Joe's mother. Let's see what that leads to. I hope the finale is wildfire.